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Norwich Union is to launch its EquityRelease Cash Reserve Option on 10 July 2006.

The Norwich Union Cash Reserve Option is a lifetime mortgage. Itenables customers to unlock some of the value in their home byreleasing an initial amount of money and keeping a reserve fundavailable that can be released in future when required.

Customers’ access to their cash reserve is guaranteed for 10years and there is no limit to the number of releases a customercan make. (Terms and conditions apply. See notes toeditors).

Daren Carter, director of sales and marketing at NorwichUnion Personal Finance, said: “Since entering the equityrelease market in 1998, Norwich Union has been at the forefront ofmany product developments. The launch of the Cash Reserve Option isan exciting addition to our product range and means that we are nowthe only major provider to offer reversion, drawdown and lump-sumlifetime mortgage plans.”

The Norwich Union Cash Reserve Option will be available fromfinancial advisers and Norwich Union Personal Finance salesforce.The minimum initial amount that can be taken is a cash amount of£10,000 and a cash reserve of £5,000. The cash reserve is availablefor withdrawal at any time in the future and the minimum withdrawalis £5,000.

The reserve can be suspended if the borrower breaches terms andconditions, for example, if the borrower becomes bankrupt.

All borrowers must be a minimum age of 60.There is no maximum age. The plan can be written on a single orjoint basis.

The interest rate is fixed at the rate that is current on the daythat the initial loan and each subsequent borrowing is released.This means that a different rate may be charged for each release.Interest is calculated on a daily basis and compoundedannually.

Norwich Union is a member of Safe Homes Income Plans (SHIP), anorganisiation that was set up in 1991 to promote safe equityrelease products. As a member of SHIP, Norwich Union lifetimemortgages have a no-negative equity guarantee built in asstandard.

AboutNorwichUnionNorwich Union is theUK’s largest insurer. It is a leading provider of life,pensions and investment products and one of the largest financialadviser (FA) providers. FAs provide over 70% of the company'slong-term savings business in the UK.

Norwich Union is the UK’s largest general insurer with amarket share of around 14%, with a focus on insurance forindividuals and small businesses.